Health & Fitness
You Say Townie, I Say Who?
A quick introduction blog to who I am and why I am blogging. I was recently elected to Norwood Town Meeting for district 2.
My name is Peter “Pete” J. Downing and I am a current resident of Norwood. I am 34 years old, married, and have a beautiful 18-month-old daughter. Not originally from Norwood, I moved here back in the fall of 2009 and I have to say, I love this town! We moved to Norwood to be closer to my wife’s sister and her husband, who was born and raised in Norwood, and my niece. I grew up in a similar setting, a city way, way out in western Massachusetts called Pittsfield. I grew up in a large family of nine children. Seven of those nine children were adopted. In the end, I found a great neighborhood, a beautiful house and again, I truly love Norwood.
Enough about me. Let’s get to the “meat” of the blog....
I recently got elected to Norwood Town Meeting (NTM) in district 2. My desire and intent to join NTW and get more involved is driven by my father who runs veterans shelters in western Massachusetts called SoldierOn. His efforts inspire me to try and give back where I can. I planned to make Norwood my home indefinitely and have no plans of leaving anytime soon!
Find out what's happening in Norwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The other reason why I decided to make a run for NTM is to hopefully get others in my age demographic inspired to get involved with the town. Let’s face it… we are the future of this town and we need to get more involved. I am personally using NTM to get my name out there, learn the town politics a bit more and start planting the seed for a possible future run at some larger role.
My main areas of focus and passions are:
Find out what's happening in Norwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
- The schools
- The town’s center
- The town’s “curb appeal”
- Streamlining the budget
Sure there are other areas, but these are the ones that come to mind!
So I may not be the definition of “townie” but I sure as well will try and earn that title. I do not plan on going anywhere anytime soon. My blogs will focus on town happenings, town businesses and more.
I know I am a non-townie and every townie I meet welcomes me with open arms. If you care about this town, then to me, you are a townie. If you want to make Norwood your home and not a stepping stone to other surrounding towns, then to me, you are a townie. "Townie" does not have to mean born and raised! I am not a "townie" by definition and know I have only lived in Norwood for three years, but I am here to stay. I am making an effort because I want to make a difference. So in the end, when you say "townie," I say "who" because in my eyes, anyone who wants to help make Norwood a better place is a townie.
